The Price To Pay
by st0ptheworld
Summary: What would you do if you found yourself in the middle of murder with a complete stranger?
1. Chapter 1

The Price To Pay

**Demi's POV**

My eyelids fluttered open, my pupils struggling to adjust to the bright light. I raised both hands and rubbed my brown eyes. I just experienced the absolute worst nightmare I've ever had in my entire life. The strange thing though? It was extremely vivid. The colors, the sounds, the people- everything. I sat up on the bed and leaned against the headboard. My head started throbbing as I looked around. Where in the world am I? This isn't my room. My hand traveled from my eyes to my throbbing skull.

"You're awake."

The man's voice startled me almost half to death. My right hand now clutching my chest, I look up to see a familiar face.

"Didn't mean to scare you. Sorry." He quickly apologizes. The expression was drained from this man's face, but his deep brown eyes looked sad. I knew exactly why.

I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out. My throat ran dry and my body tensed up. Last night was not a dream. The extremely vivid nightmare turned into a horrific memory. The images of the night flashed before my eyes. I looked around the room then back up at the man. Am I hallucinating? Is this actually happening? I stared at him, choked up.

One of his thick eyebrows raised. My eyes stayed locked on him. He had the same short brunette hair as the man last night, the same Brooklyn Nets jersey, the same distressed jeans, shoes, everything. It was undeniably him. "Are you okay?" He cooed, wetting his lips and taking a step towards me. I felt his hand gently grasp my shoulder.

I jerked his hand away. I was almost unable to speak. "You killed him." I managed to choke out as I shot him a look of pure bitterness.

The man returned the look and groaned. "It was an accident." He hissed at me, clenching his jaw.

"Are you fucking insane?!" I hollered at him. How was I supposed to suppress my anger? "You shot him point blank!" I scurried up off the bed as fast as I could. I can't be in the same room as a freaking murderer. Who knows what my fate would be?

He roughly grabbed my arm and gripped it tightly. "That wasn't supposed to happen." He said through his teeth. I got a closer look at him. His eyes were bloodshot. Was he high or something? I tried to jerk away, but my efforts failed. I felt my throat dry up again. "Get off of me." I choked out. His grip became much tighter. _Looks like I'm his next victim._ I thought as tears began to well up in my eyes.

* * *

**Joe's POV**

I felt myself soften the second I saw tears stream down her cheek. I scared this girl. She's terrified for her life because of ME. What did I just do? I let go of her arm as gently as I could and sank down onto the floor. Who am I? I stared down at my hands and glanced over at the girl. "I'm sorry." My voice whispered to her.

She sat down next to me rubbing her left arm a little. I looked over at her through the corner of my eye. Why didn't she run? I could have beaten her to death right there! For a second, I swore I felt her eyes on me. What was she looking at? I rubbed my face and sighed, my stubble lightly pricking my sweaty palms. That reminds me, I need to buy a razor next chance I get.

I looked over at her. "Go." I pointed towards the wooden door in front of us. "You don't deserve this."

She shook her head and kept on looking at me. Do I have something on my face? I quickly wiped the sides of my mouth with my hand.

"I'm not going anywhere." Her voice broke the silence.

Was this girl out of her damn mind?


	2. Chapter 2

**Demi's POV**

"Yes I'm fine." I rolled my eyes and held the phone closer to my ear as I assured my sister on the other line. Don't get me wrong, I love Vanessa. She's always been my go-to girl ever since I was say.. 5? Sometimes she can get paranoid and that's what I can't stand about her. She takes the four year age difference to the extreme and acts like a second mother.

"Demi are you sure? Who are you with? Where are you anyway?" I could feel her grow suspicious over the phone.

"I'm alone and I'm in a hotel, Vanessa." I explained to her, even though half of it was false. Let's just hope she believes me.

She sighed in frustration. "Please just come home."

Well at least she believed it.

"I.." I shook my head in disagreement. There's no way in hell I'm going home. I have things to clear up. "I really wish I could. I just can't face anyone right now, especially _him_."

"Fine." I pictured her rolling her coffee-colored eyes at me like she always does. "Can you at least just tell me where you are so Mom and I can stop worrying our asses off?"

I paced around the room using my right shoulder to press the phone against my ear. I guess I was nervous because there was black nail polish chippings all over the floor. I always pick at my nails when I'm nervous. I stopped walking and pressed the speaker against my chest.

I looked around for the man, but he was nowhere to be found. Fuck.

"Demi are you still there?" Vanessa questioned.

"Uh, yeah." I responded dumbly.

Suddenly, the door opened and the man came in. He had a plastic shopping bag in one hand, a green apple in the other. Taking a bite into the apple, he kicked the door shut. It slammed pretty hard.

"Demi?! Are you okay?! What the hell was that?!" My sister practically screamed into my ear.

I winced, staring at him from across the room. "The line's breaking up. I'll call you later." I hit the end button before she could even interfere.

He tossed the bag on the flowered sofa and looked at me. "Was that your mom?" A chunk of apple flew out of his mouth when he spoke. Remind me why I agreed to stay again?

"Sister." I corrected as he came closer to me. My eyes followed him. He was huge and could definitely overpower me. It frightened me a lot more than I expected. Years of karate couldn't even prepare to take him down. I'm screwed if he ever lays another hand on me.

"Oh." He walked over to the trashcan and tossed his apple core in the garbage.

"What's in there?" I crossed my arms over my chest and nodded towards the bag on the couch. If it's not some type of food I think I'm going to start sobbing.

* * *

**Joe's POV**

I scratched the back of my head and walked towards the couch. "Well you haven't eaten since yesterday." I dumped the contents of the bag out on the cushion. God that's such an ugly couch. It's 2010, you'd think they'd update it from the 70s by now but I guess not. "So I brought you something to eat."

"Thanks." She smiled genuinely at me and grabbed the coke and hot dog wrapped in foil.

"No problem." I shrugged and turned the TV on. This poor girl has no idea what's she's getting into. I should've brought her a feast of some sort.

She walked over to the bed and sat down cross-legged. I never realized how tiny she was. I feel like more of an ass for laying a hand on her now. There's no way she could've defended herself. I sat down on the couch and put my feet up on the coffee table, arms behind my head.

I thought about how much I could've harmed her and felt a lump in my throat. "How's your arm?"

The girl held her arm out and twisted it around a little. You could clearly see the marks from my hand, almost purple now, on her forearm. She shrugged.

"Fine I guess."

I nodded and looked back at the TV.

I really suck at conversation. I guess that's due to the fact I'm used to being alone. I was an only child until I was seven, then I turned into an orphan. My parents died in a car accident on impact. That puts me at ease knowing they didn't have to suffer. My mother and father were my world. They made me feel absolutely invincible and gave me their all every one of those seven years we had. After my parents departure, my uncle Jared took me in and raised me as his own son. Everything was fine up until two years ago when uncle Jared was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. For a while, it looked like he would pull through. Everything was looking up, the chemo and radiation were going great and he always kept that goofy smile on his face. Then in August, two days before my birthday, things took a turn for the worst. After being practically lifeless for over four days, I made the decision to pull the plug on uncle Jared. It was the single most hardest thing I've ever done in my life. Uncle Jared was gone and once again I was all alone.

"Are you okay?" She screwed the cap on her coke and looked at me.

I snapped out of my daze and sat up. I guess I was slouching cause my back ached. "Yeah."

"You don't look oka-"

I groaned in annoyance.

"Just shut up and eat your food." I mumbled, rubbing my aching back.


	3. Chapter 3

**Joe's POV**

_The sound of a gun firing rang through my ears, my hand vibrating. I looked down at my feet only to see his lifeless body lying in a pool of his own blood. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. I was dumbfounded, terrified and disgusted. I dropped my gun and watched it land in the pool of blood below. Its impact created a light rippling wave throughout the puddle. The reality of the situation struck me, my eyes widening in terror. I KILLED him. I dropped to the ground as countless sobs and screams escaped my lips. It was dark and foggy, the only thing I could see was his lifeless body in front of me.. That is until a warm hand rested upon my shoulder. I turned my head to see a pair of mocha-colored irises looking into mine._

My eyes immediately snapped open. I was out of breath, my chest heaving in and out. Thank God it was just a dream, thank god. I used the back of my hand to wipe the cold sweat off my forehead and tried to my best ability to even my breathing.

"Are you okay?" A quiet voice asks.

I turn my head and realized it's her. Was she watching me the entire time?

"I'm fine." I say hoarsely and sit up. "Just a little nightmare." I crack a reassuring smile at her.

She still looks concerned; I guess I wasn't as convincing as I hoped.

"Was it about him?" Her eyes want answers.

"Yeah." I breathed out, letting her in. She might as well know, I mean she's stuck with me now.

Before she could respond, I rose from the couch and made my way to the bathroom. I shut the door behind me and flicked the light on. The cool water ran into the sink when I turned the faucet on. I wet my hands and then splashed my face with the water. That should wake me up, right? I grabbed the towel from beside the sink and patted my face dry. All that was left was my reflection in that oval mirror. It didn't take me long to notice the changes in my face from just these past few days. I had no emotion left in myself, my eyes had dark bags under them and my skin looked a lot paler than before. I felt absolutely repulsed by myself. I guess murdering someone really takes a toll on you, eh?

My inner thoughts were interrupted by the sound of light knocking.

I opened the door and raised both eyebrows. "What?"

"What are we doing today?"

The way she looked at me wasn't friendly at all. I guess she's justified, she did see me kill someone.

"Hold up." I shook my hand in front of her face and back tracked. Did I even know her name?

She raised her eyebrow at me and took a step back.

"I'm Joe." I extended my hand out to her.

"Demi." She replied and shook my hand.

An awkward silence filled the room. I looked down at her.

"Oh right." I laughed nervously. "I took your car to the auto shop yesterday. It should be done by now if you want to see if its fixed."

Her eyes lit up. "I already forgot about my car." Demi ran her fingers through her hair and shook her head. "That sounds good though."

* * *

**Demi's POV**

We walked silently down the pavement towards the shop. I slipped my hands in my hoodie and glanced at Joe who was basically jogging. It was beyond awkward. The only noise was the sound. of our footsteps, cars and the occasional breeze. Even though I tried to start a conversation, he'd completely ignore the fact that I was there. He'd just nod or not respond to my statement.

"So how close are we?" I asked Joe, hoping he'd respond. You get kind of lonely with seldom interaction.

"Just around the corner." He stated, shooting a smile back at me.

I let out a sigh of relief. My feet are killing me, not to mention I haven't eaten any breakfast yet. I peered around at my surroundings. It was a rainy, grey day. The streets were wet and puddles were forming by the curb. The dreary sky spit out tiny rain droplets every few seconds, a few poking at my face like tiny pins. Cars sped by and sliced through the puddles, water streaming out from each side of the vehicles. We turned the corner and Joe walked towards a brick two-story building. I followed behind him, avoiding stepping in the puddles. I couldn't get these shoes wet, they're all I have right now. As we got closer to the building, I could see that the front was two white garage doors, both opened. Graffiti covered more than half of the red brick walls. On the left side was a white door, enclosed behind the chain fence that ran around the perimeter of the property. It was a scary looking place, but I think I trust Joe. He's taken care of me the past 24 hours, hasn't he? Then I started to think, where I would be if we didn't have our little encounter?

Joe swaggered into the open garage and was immediately greeted by the grease-covered employees.

I followed hesitantly and felt a few pairs of eyes on me. I allowed my hair to fall in front of my face. This was awkward for me. I haven't had a lot of male attention since_ him_. It just made me feel insecure.

I looked up to see Joe talking to an older man, probably in his mid 40s, against the front counter a few feet away from me. They shared a few laughs and genuine smiles. I've never seen Joe smile like that before, he actually has really nice teeth. Anyway, the man came out from behind the counter and handed Joe a set of keys before patting him on the shoulder. I saw the older man glance at me and whisper something in Joe's ear, Joe nodding back. I haven't mastered the art of reading lips yet, so it was nothing to my use.. though it made me feel super uncomfortable.

Joe came back over to me twirling the keys around his index finger. "Well, the car's done. Here's your key."

He placed the keys in my hand and studied my face for a little. He sure does have an art of making people uncomfortable.

"Now you can drive home safely." He mumbled.

Did he just say _Home_? I can't go back there. Especially after what just happened. My eyes widened when I heard this.

"What?" I asked him again just to make sure I was hearing right.

"Home." He raised an eyebrow at me. "You really don't want to stay here, right?"

I started feeling helpless.

"I was hoping I could stay for a few more days." I half whispered, looking up at him.

For a second, I swore he was going to let me. The way he looked at me was so assuring. Then something must've snapped. His eyes grew huge and he let out a fake laugh.

"No. You're going back where you came from."

Ouch.

"But-"

I felt a tight grip around my forearm as I was led to the corner of the room. His muscular build hovered over me as he whispered in my ear.

"Listen to me, Demi. It's not safe for you to be here. The police are looking for me and its too dangerous for you to get caught up in this mess, okay? You're going home."

Does he think I can't handle it? I know what I'm getting myself into and I don't fucking care.

A bit of adrenaline built up inside of me as I jerked my hand away. I looked sternly into his eyes.

"I don't fucking care."

He raised his hand up in the air as if he was going to hit me. He yelled at me slightly above a whisper, clenching his jaw.

"Well I fucking care! This is my problem, not yours. Stay away from me and my mess."

I couldn't think of anything quick to say back to him.

"This isn't where you're supposed to be." Joe mumbled under his breath, rolling up the sleeves of his black hoodie. "I'm sorry, Demi." He shook his head and exited the shop, leaving me behind to sulk in my own misery.

I drove down the road and back towards home, the music blasting. I was hoping a little Coldplay would clear my head, but apparently not. I didn't realize I was crying until my eyes welled up with water. I didn't bother to wipe the tears. I guess I was too occupied in my own thoughts. This was seriously it. I had to go home and my biggest fear again. I thought I found my exodus from life, but I guess I was wrong. Things just couldn't swing in my direction one time, could they?

The tears obscured my vision so much that I couldn't see where I was heading. I pulled off to the shoulder of the road and put the car in park. I needed to clear my head. With my right hand, I turned my music down to a soft hum. I rested my head on my leather steering wheel and sighed.

**Knock knock.**

_What the hell?_

**KNOCK KNOCK.**

_This is my fucking car, not a front door._

**KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.**

The knocks got louder as time passed. I turned my head to my left to see an officer standing outside my window. Did the guys back at the shop sabotage my car? Is one of my lights out? Was I going over the speed limit? Is that what the man whispered to Joe? My mind raced as I rolled down the fogged up window.

"Is there a problem, miss?" The officer asked, his voice filled with concern. He removed his glasses and leaned against my window. His eyes were very blue, his hair a short, sandy blonde color. He looked young, but undeniably a brute.

I shook my head and wiped my eyes with the corner of my sleeve.

"I have chronic dry eyes, it's nothing."

Damn that's the stupidest excuse I've ever come up with.

He looked at me skeptically. "Mhm. Now can I ask you something, miss?"

He slipped a wallet-sized piece of paper out of his breast pocket through my window. It was a high school graduation picture. I studied it carefully flipping it over to see if there was a date or a name.

"I need help hunting down this man." His hand reached in and pointed at the boy in the picture. "This picture is a few years dated, but he's sure as hell wanted." The officer laughed coldly.

"Have you seen him?"

I raised and eyebrow and got a closer look at the picture. I felt my heart skip a beat when I recognized the familiar face. It was _**him.**_


End file.
